If you’ve ever hit the wall on a training run, you know it’s not fun. Your legs feel like lead beneath you, your breathing gets shallow, your arms flail, and as hard as you try to pick up the pace, you feel like you’re running in quicksand all the way to the finish. Why does this happen? More likely than not, you’ve run out of fuel.
“We tend to underestimate the amount of carbohydrates we use up when we’re running, especially when we’re going long or fast,” says Rebecca Addison, R.D. and sports nutritionist at Auburn University. “And when we burn through all of our carbs, our bodies fade quickly.”
As we’ve written about before, carbohydrates—a type of macronutrient that is mainly stored as glycogen in our muscles and liver—are our bodies’ preferred source of fuel for exercise, since they’re quicker and easier to break down than fat.
High-Protein Snacks for Runners load up on carbs before races, when it comes to fueling our day-to-day training, we sometimes slack off. Depending on work and other obligations, our runs might be pushed to early morning, lunchtime, or late at night, and it can be hard to carve out time to eat, let alone prepare the right things to eat—i.e., food that will give you quick energy without causing stomach issues during the workout.
Having previously competed on University of Michigan’s track and cross country teams as well as the True Blue Elite pro team in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Addison knows a thing or two about fueling runs. Here, she shares her tips for smart carb-loading before workouts.
Consider the Intensity of the Workout
“The amount of carbs we need depends on the workout we’re doing,” Addison says. It makes sense when you think about it: A 30-minute recover run is much easier than, say, a 5 x 1,000-meter interval session, Blast through a series of HIIT sessions to boost running strength and prevent injury with the.
“When you do sprint intervals, your heart rate spikes, and your muscles need immediate energy to keep going at that speed,” Addison says. She notes that distance runners sometimes assume workouts like 200-meter sprints are “easier” than longer intervals, since they cover less ground. But in reality, the harder you push the pedal to the metal, the more fuel you burn in a shorter amount of time, she explains.
[Tips for Fueling With Carbs Before a Workout IronStrength Workout.]
Addison’s rule of thumb is that if you’re training at 60 percent or higher of your max heart rate for a long time or are doing speed intervals, you need to be properly carb-loaded before and during the workout.
“If you have a couple of hours before running, it’s a good idea to pair carbs with some protein and fat, which break down more slowly than just carbs alone,” says Addison. “Then as you get closer to the workout, top off your glycogen stores with simpler carbs that are easy to digest, like cereal or an energy bar.”
For example, if Addison’s doing a hard tempo run at noon, she will typically eat oatmeal with banana slices and peanut butter for breakfast, then have a bowl of cereal and milk as a snack about an hour before the workout. During the workout, she’ll sip on a sports drink like Gatorade.
Plan Your Meals Around the Workout
For early-morning runners, going into a workout properly fueled can be challenging, since you often don’t have hours to digest before running.
“If you work out in the morning and don’t like to eat first thing, it’s helpful to have a carb-heavy dinner at night and a snack before you go to bed, like fruit with some peanut butter,” says Addison. Since the cross-country team has practice at 6 every morning, she tells her runners to have something small before, such as an energy bar or half a banana.
Addison says that before easy recovery runs (during which your heart rate is lower than 60 percent of your max) of up to 90 minutes, it’s okay not to eat anything before you head out in the morning—just make sure you eat a carb-heavy dinner and snack the night before. And if you need a quick boost in the morning without feeling weighed down with a meal, Addison suggests sipping on a sports drink.
People who run later in the day have more time to digest before working out, so carb-loading is a bit easier. Addison suggests eating a satisfying meal with carbs and protein about two and a half to three hours before you run. Then, about an hour before the run, have an easily-digestible snack to top off your energy stores.
“The key is to find foods that sit well with you,” says Addison. In her own experience, she’s found certain fibrous foods—such as apples and large servings of vegetables—to be too hard to digest, so she saves eating them until after the run.
A go-to, pre-run meal, she says, is scrambled eggs with a handful of spinach and a side of oatmeal with banana slices. If you’re packing lunch for work, grilled chicken with rice and salsa, pasta with marinara sauce and ground sausage, or a classic PB&J; sandwich are great for fueling an afternoon run.
“Keep in mind that our stomachs adapt,” she says. “You don’t want to avoid fruits and vegetables all day just because you’re running later. Over time, you should try to incorporate more fiber into your day, like adding a little spinach to your omelet or veggies to your chicken and rice.”
Remember That Simple Sugars Aren’t Evil
In college, Addison says she was “afraid of simple sugars,” such as those found in white bread, candy, juice, and sports drinks.
“There’s a stigma surrounding those foods that they’re always bad for you,” she says. “And in college running—where athletes are even more hyper-focused on what they put in their bodies—that stigma is emphasized. There were times when after I ate a sweet or even drank too much Gatorade, I’d feel guilty about it.”
Coaching athletes on their dietary habits now, Addison realizes how wrong those thoughts were. “Having instant sugar, like fruit snacks, right before a workout isn’t bad—it is exactly what you need,” she says.
Addison explains that our bodies absorb simple carbs (found naturally in fruit and dairy products as well as processed foods, such as candy and juice) faster than complex carbs (found in foods such as oatmeal and whole grains). So when we need an instant hit of glycogen before or during a hard workout or race, reaching for gels, energy chews, sports drinks, or even candy such as gummy bears or Skittles works like a charm, she says.
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“Don’t fall into the thinking trap that you ‘don’t need it,’ especially when you’re doing high-intensity workouts or long runs,” she says. “Your body uses those carbs up fast, and you’ll be amazed how much better you’ll feel with the instant boost. Plus, a little sugar helps you from hitting a wall later on.” Fueling your body with what it needs to function well can help you improve your performance when it counts.
Don’t Skip Carbs After the Workout
After the workout’s done, it’s time to replenish your glycogen stores so that your muscles, bones, and ligaments can start repairing themselves from the day’s work and be ready for the next sweat session.
“When you’re carb-depleted, your body doesn’t have the energy to recover,” Addison says. “And if you’re chronically low on carbs, you are more likely to be fatigued or develop an injury, since your body has to work harder to repair itself.”
If you aren’t eating a meal right after your run, she advises jumpstarting your recovery with a carb-and-protein combo like a Clif Bar and a banana or an apple with peanut butter, then having a larger, well-rounded meal later. For meal ideas, Addison loves pulling from Shalane Flanagan’s Run Fast. Eat Slow. and Health - Injuries. cookbooks.
“Eat what works for you, but don’t be afraid to experiment,” Addison says. “Try different breads, pastas, potatoes, rice, and oatmeal until you find the right match for your carb needs.”
What to Eat Before Running Running Times, and now she reports on elite runners and cyclists, feel-good stories, and training pieces for Runner's World and Bicycling magazines.
